Kansas cops use thermal-imaging drone camera to help catch suspect hiding in field

A Kansas sheriff’s deputy used a thermal-imaging drone camera to find a suspected thief.

Deputies were called early Saturday morning after an alarm went off in the area of 4900 SW Burlingame Road, a rural area on the southern outskirts of Topeka, the Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post.

“Evidence at the scene indicated a theft had recently taken place,” the sheriff’s office said. “One of our responding deputies, who is also a certified SUAS (Drone) pilot, was able to locate a suspect lying in a field nearby using the thermal imaging capabilities of the SUAS. A Toyota minivan registered to the suspect was also located nearby with possible stolen items.”

The sheriff’s office said Jayden Wade Flowers, 23, was arrested.

Jail records show Flowers was booked at around 1:45 a.m. and released about 25 minutes later. The booking charges were theft, criminal trespass and criminal damage to property.